With the Christmas season comes music announcing the miracle of Jesus’ birth, filling headphones, car radios and department stores alike. Six Biola University students contributed to the Christmas cheer with their new song, “He Shall Be Called.” The original music was written and performed by students in the Biola Worship Arts Collaborative, a new curated group of gifted songwriters from across campus. Students in the Collaborative work together during the songwriting process, workshopping song ideas for release to the Biola community.

“It’s been amazing to watch the creativity in the students flourish,” said Dr. Jeff Askew, director of commercial music and worship arts. “They are working hard in a very collaborative way and they each want everyone to improve and have great success. The team works well together, gives each other great feedback and celebrates successes. It’s a beautiful thing.”

Songs developed in the collaborative are considered for inclusion in Biola’s weekly chapel worship sets, with hopes of releasing two to three songs in the Spring 2026 Semester to have a meaningful impact on worship at Biola.

“We want to give voice for the student body and provide rich, theologically sound music for campus and beyond,” said Askew.

The songs are produced with the goal of being released on streaming platforms, which is exactly the path that “He Shall Be Called” followed. The song was performed at Biola’s ceremony on Dec. 5 and is available on streaming platforms.

Sophia Fisher, a music major, has been a musician since the age of five, when she began violin lessons. Listeners of “He Shall Be Called” hear her voice alongside Bible, theology and ministry major Josh Fisk’s as they sing the song they co-wrote, declaring the name of Jesus. Other students involved in the development of the song include music majors Caleb Bilti, the third songwriter, playing keys, Nat Butler on bass and Andrew Reed on drums, with business administration major Matt Olson on guitar. Fisher credited the Biola Worship Arts Collaborative with keeping her disciplined during the songwriting process.

“Being part of the Biola Worship Arts Collaborative has really shaped the way I approach writing,” said Fisher. “It’s helped me stay attentive to what the Lord is doing in my life and in our community, and it’s pushed me to write from Scripture with more intention. Being surrounded by people who are constantly creating is incredibly inspiring — there’s this beautiful sense of shared responsibility, knowing we all need to show up and pull our weight and bring things to the table! It’s helped me stay disciplined and inspired as a songwriter.”

Fisk started playing music when he was a freshman in high school and has found being part of the collaborative to be a growing experience for him as a musician, especially as a songwriter. His appreciation for co-writing songs flourished during the process of creating “He Shall Be Called.”

“There have been plenty of times where I am stuck on where to take a melody or generally what to do musically with a song, and someone else in the room jumps in with exactly what the song needs. That’s what I love most about co-writing — it’s meant to be community-focused,” said Fisk. “Co-writing feels like ‘writing with the door open’ so others can work with you on an idea you may have brought with you. The whole dynamic of co-writing reminds me of how God designed the church: different and unique parts working together in unity.”

The Worship Arts Collaborative, housed in the Conservatory of Music in the School of Fine Arts and Communication, is a yearlong initiative designed for students who are primarily music majors or minors to workshop, write and refine original worship music for the Biola community. Certain songs are chosen for professional production, with all songwriting rights remaining with the students. Fisk described the process of writing and crafting the song as intentional and prayerful.

“As we wrote and prayed, we kept one main thing in mind: that every lyric and musical choice needed to be selected carefully so that the song and the Lord would be best served,” said Fisk. “Caleb Bilti, who co-wrote the song with us, pushed us to ensure this. There was one day where we spent almost three hours wrestling with one line until we felt it was right.”

Fisher described the process as a collaboration from start to finish.

“The process was a mix of teamwork and persistence! We took our time crafting the lines, brought it to Jeff once it felt solid, and then Jeff sent it to the producer, who brought it to life in such a beautiful way,” said Fisher. “From finishing the song to recording and filming the video, it was truly a collaborative effort from start to finish.”

Stream “He Shall Be Called” on , , and this Christmas.

Written by Sarah Dougher, media relations specialist. For more information, email media.relations@biola.edu.